


Camouflage

by Katryusha



Series: So Sorry [2]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vietnam, M/M, idk - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-20
Updated: 2017-02-20
Packaged: 2018-09-25 17:38:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9835133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katryusha/pseuds/Katryusha
Summary: “I’m Arthur Kirkland, PFC. What’s your name?”"The boys just call me Camouflage~"





	

**Author's Note:**

> If you recognize the title, then, congratulations, you know the story. LMAO  
> If not, then.... hahahahhah--
> 
> This is situated in the Vietnam, more specifically during the Vietnam War. 
> 
> Not Beta-ed, and not really historically accurate, so, deal with it.

“Fuck—!” A breathless gasp, “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck—!” Arthur wheezed as he ran through the wild jungle, jumping over rocks, sliding beneath tree branches and the like.

Reaching a small clearing he slowed down to a stop, breathing harshly, he tried to listen to his surroundings. He wasn’t going to die here.

There were steps and voices and the sound of guns blazing.

Arthur dived for a bush, crawling on the ground, and trying to mask his presence.

He kneeled and took a peak.

Arthur had been sent on a Seek and Destroy mission with his small group, but he had somehow ended up breaking apart from them. His bloody weapon had jammed. The new weapons were shit and could probably cost a soldier’s life. Not his life though, or at least not yet.

A twig snapped, Arthur stopped breathing, tense, waiting for his demise, he grabbed his empty gun. He could still beat other people with it and he wasn’t about to go down without a fight.

Someone grabbed him from behind, a hand covering his mouth and a muscled arm trapping his own, Arthur froze for a moment before he started struggling.

“Shhh— If you don’t stop moving we’ll be discovered.” Someone whispered in his hear. English. _American English_. Arthur stopped squirming in his hold, slowly relaxing his muscles and his thundering heart.

The man behind him slowly removed his hands and Arthur swiftly turned around to look at him.

A big pair of friendly and bright blue eyes greeted him together with a big smile. Quickly looking at the American’s insignia, he straightened slightly. A Second Lieutenant.

The man put a finger over his lips, indicating silence, Arthur nodded with a gulp.

“If Charlie wants to tangle, now he’ll have two to dodge.” He said with a wink, Arthur cracked a smile. Things were starting to look up for him.

“Thank you…” He replied, hope lacing his tone, he had honestly thought he would die alone out here, but now he had someone. “I’m Arthur Kirkland, PFC. I was on a _S &D_ mission but got separated from my squad.” He explained quietly. Pondering for a few moments, he braved the informal question, “What’s your name?”

The man didn’t seem surprised or angry at his way of speaking out of order, instead offering a bigger smile, blue eyes twinkling with mischievousness, “The boys just call me _Camouflage_ ~”

Arthur didn’t question the odd name since everyone seemed to win one eventually. He didn’t have one yet, however.

And it was the end of the pleasing conversation. The voices became louder, someone ordering others around with anger, Arthur didn’t understand much of Vietnamese, but it was obvious they were looking for him, and possibly the American in front of him as well.

With a few hand signs and pronounced words, they formulated a few strategies and somehow managed to take down four enemies, attacking them from behind quietly and hitting them strongly. Arthur with his jammed weapon while _Camouflage_ , from what the Brit had seen, simply knocked them out with his fists.

Of course, there weren’t only just four enemies this deep in the jungle.

They found more, and those weren’t so easy to take down, but Arthur was amazed at their accomplishment.

They fought all night, side by side. They took their stance, their last stand. However, there was something weird about the whole situation…

Arthur had to wonder how the bullets never seemed to hit the American… It was as if they went right through him, as if he wasn’t even there…  

He couldn’t be hallucinating this, right? After all, _Camouflage_ had been very firm and real when he touched him. Maybe he was just seeing things and being paranoid about the bullets buzzing through the air.

Morning had come by the time they reached a riverbank. It was a wonder how they even managed to come so far, but Arthur was thankful to _Camouflage_. If it hadn’t been the American, he wouldn’t have reached this far, that was for sure.

There was an ambush.

And this time, Arthur was sure that they wouldn’t get out alive of this one, being caught by surprise, they weren’t prepared.

And then, a bullet that Arthur was sure had his name written on it came flying through a bush, however, suddenly, _Camouflage_ was there. And the American simply swatted it away, _as if it was a fly_.

Arthur was glued to his spot on the dirty, muddy ground. Staring with wide eyes at the American who in a matter of what seemed like seconds had defeated their enemies. The crunch of their bones as _Camouflage_ broke them resounded through him.

The Brit panted harshly as he tried to make sense of what he had just seen. But he had no time to get his bearings.

 _Camouflage_ started to pull him and they ran. Arthur’s mind was a jumbled mess, but he couldn’t help the relief that surged through him as he finally spotted his _H.Q._

He started walking towards it, but then looked back at the American, wasn’t he coming?

“Aren’t you coming?” He asked, head tilting to the side. However, the American’s expression simply turned into a bitter smile, although his eyes conveyed fondness he shook his head from side to side and waved at him before disappearing into the jungle, “Wait—!” Arthur called out, but _Camouflage_ was long gone.

Arthur’s expression fell into a grimace, brows furrowing as he felt a pang on his heart. That sad expression didn’t fit with the cheerful American.

The Brit shook his head and ran back to his _H.Q._ , maybe the American was going back to get someone else?

Once safely inside, Arthur told his concerned comrades about his night filled with battles that he fought together with the big Marine named _Camouflage_. One of his friends gulped at hearing the name and a medic was called over.

The medic, a French frog by the name of Francis Bonnefoy, took his arm and led him to a green tent.

“I’m not wounded, frog, why are you bringing me here?” He complained with little patience, he was tired and just wanted to rest after reporting to his superiors.

“You may be telling the truth, Arthur, but…” Entering the tent, the Frenchman led Arthur deep into it, showing him a bed where there lay a body covered by a slim sheet.

Francis pulled the clothing away and Arthur gasped, feeling his heart and breath stop momentarily at the sight of the man. The American man that laid there, unmoving.

“...This here is _Camouflage_ , and he’s been right here since he passed away last night.” The Frenchman finished sadly, placing a hand on Arthur’s shoulder in a comforting gesture, he smiled faintly, but Arthur was transfixed, staring at the American that he had definitely seen in the jungle not even half an hour ago, the American that helped him, _that saved him._

What…? It couldn’t be possible, right? Had Arthur actually been hallucinating the entire time? It seemed likely now.

“Arthur, before he passed away…” Francis started carefully, “He said that his only wish was to save a Young Marine caught in a barrage.”

Arthur felt his eyes watering, the tears starting to stream down his cheeks as a sob rose from his throat. He had barely talked to the American, he barely even knew the man, and yet—

Why was he crying—?

A dog tag was dangled in front of his face and he hesitantly reached out for it, cradling it in his hand, he read the name on it.

“ _Alfred_ …” The tears seemed to be unstoppable now, and he still had no idea why he was caring about this strange man so much.

It was weird, but he had no explanation, and neither did the frog, it seemed.

“Keep his dog tag, Arthur. I know he would want you to have it.”

The Brit nodded, trying to keep a stiff upper lip, but failing rather dramatically. And in front of the frog too.

Francis left him after that and Arthur stood there alone gazing at Alfred. He placed a shaky hand right above the American’s lifeless heart and sniffed.

“ _Semper fidelis_.”

**Author's Note:**

> Now, let's see...  
> Arthur is 18 in this and Alfred is 20, I guess.  
> \--Arthur's 18 cause he's a Young Marine. The Young Marines is a youth program in the United States and Japan open to all youth between the ages of 8 to 18 or completion of high school (whichever is later, not to exceed 20 years of age).
> 
> \--This was based of the song "Camouflage", i decided to write this after listening to the cover by Sabaton which is, in my opinion, much better than the original, lmao. If u go listen to it, u can see hella lot of shit that i used from the song, xDD
> 
> \--The weapon used here is the M16. The US service rifle was initially the M14, but it was found to be unsuitable for jungle warfare, thus it was replaced by the M16 which was more accurate and lighter than the AK-47. However, the gun suffered from a jamming flaw known as "failure to extract", which means that a spent cartridge case remained lodged in the action after a round is fired. The jamming was, supposedly, caused primarily by a change in gunpowder which was done without adequate testing and reflected a decision for which the safety of soldiers was a secondary consideration. Letters from the field began reporting the rifles were malfunctioning at an alarming rate, with U.S. troops found dead next to jammed M16 rifles. The issue was soon solved with the M16A1.
> 
> \--(Y'all don't understand how confused i was with the freaking ranks. I tried) Arthur's a PFC = Private First Class. In the United States Marine Corps, the rank of Private First Class is the second lowest, just under Lance Corporal and just above Private.
> 
> \--Alfred's a Second Lieutenant. In the United States, second lieutenant is the normal entry-level rank for most commissioned officers in the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps and is equivalent to the rank of ensign in the Navy and Coast Guard.
> 
> \--H.Q. = Headquarters 
> 
> \--Charlie = It comes from “Việt Nam Cộng-sản”, which just means “Vietnamese Communists”. This, in turn, was shortened to just Việt Cộng, from here, “Viet Cong” was commonly further shortened to “VC”, which in the NATO phonetic alphabet is pronounced “Victor-Charlie”, which gave rise to the further shortened, “Charlie” designation.
> 
> \--Semper fidelis (usually shortened to Semper Fi) is a Latin phrase that means "always faithful" or "always loyal". In the United States it is best known as the motto of the United States Marine Corps. Elsewhere, it is a common motto for towns, families, schools, and military units. 
> 
> \--Barrage = A heavy barrier of artillery fire to protect one's own advancing or retreating troops or to stop the advance of enemy troops.
> 
> Aaaaand, i guess this is it? Lmao, i think the story is missing a few pieces here and there, but whatever, i'm tired, sorta, lmao. this is so cringy, but i wanted to write it, imma cry to my bed now


End file.
